


The Bodyguard & The Princess

by Lucianhuntress



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Eventual Romance, Eventual Smut, F/M, Fluff, Light Angst, Romance, Romantic Soulmates, Smut, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, Soulmates
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-12
Updated: 2018-05-12
Packaged: 2019-03-04 00:25:19
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 20,416
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13352625
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lucianhuntress/pseuds/Lucianhuntress
Summary: You are the Princess of Lucis kingdom, sister to Noctis Lucis Caelum and daughter to King Regis. You are given a handful of bodyguards from the Kingsglaive - Nyx Ulric being one of the chosen guards.The male glaive sweeps you off your feet, but also the legends are proving to be true; you have a soulmate. And he is closer than you think.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

>   
>  More stuff [@tumblr](https://lucianhuntress.tumblr.com/).
> 
>  
> 
>   
> 

A bubbling fit of giggles made Nyx snap from his peculiar daydreams. Instantly his blue eyes shifted to search for the princess from a joyful bunch of partygoers.

_There._

Nyx felt a thud of relief in his heart when he found you, mingling with dignitaries and possible suitors. The look on your face was otherworldly beautiful when you laughed at their stupid — pretentious jokes.  _Hell,_  the look on your face was  _always_  otherworldly beautiful, there was no need for antics of any sort to bring that heartwarming smile to your lips.

You were the sole reason Nyx couldn’t stop taking subtle looks at your direction. Glances that lingered on you more than he could count. Of course he had to do it, because he had been assigned earlier that day to make sure you were safe. He was trained to take even a bullet for you, but he often caught himself completely lost in your grace for purely selfish reasons.

Seeing you enjoy the evening with a bunch of handsome, highborn men made him grit his teeth. The merry feeling pulsing in his shoulder couldn’t stop his blood from heating up to the point of boiling and when he realized what was going on in his head —once again—, he paused to exhale.

_She’s the princess, what are you even thinking? I haven’t even spoken to her before._

Ever since he managed to lay his eyes upon you—, the princess of the royal Lucis Caelum family, — for the first time, you actually started invading his thoughts more than it was appropriate. And even when he had no claim on you, he couldn’t restrain the jealousy roaring in his chest like a coeurl sitting in its cage — crying for freedom.

He noticed how you froze for a moment, but it was over faster than Nyx could comprehend the situation or the sudden frustrated look passing through your eyes in a flash.

The joyful, giddy feeling pulsing in Nyx’s left shoulder faded and he felt even more relieved. Giggling randomly would have been awkward for a glaive, while he was fulfilling his duties as the princess’ bodyguard. Nyx made a mental note to thank his  **soulmate**  later for calming down, his job was difficult enough without the random feelings taking over him.

King Regis had been so clear with his orders he had given to a handful of skilled glaives, Nyx being one of them. When prince Noctis was groomed to be the next king, you were only to be protected from the harms and terrors of the world. That being said, Nyx and a group of selected few had been ordered to follow you everywhere since that day.

The scarce privacy you had had yesterday and all the days before, was now gone.

The King also had a more… discreet plan for his only daughter. Throwing parties including high-class guests in them was not a rare sight anymore. Parties grew more frequent the older you got and the whole Citadel would gossip after every night, if the princess had found her future husband.

Attending to parties only meant more work for Nyx, but it also meant more time spent fixing his ocean blue eyes on you.

* * *

As the evening grew darker, the salon warmer and people more or less jubilant over the mild drinks consumed, while conversing about the most trivial of subjects. You felt exhausted after hours and hours of prudent suggestions of marrying a corporate heir.

The guy surely had his charms, but he just didn’t seem… right. His smile didn’t make your heart gallop wildly from tension nor did his sweet jokes make any butterflies bat their wings in your gut. You knew that your father wanted you to be happy and marry the one that felt right for you, but being the princess of Lucis narrowed down your options. There were no suitable bachelors lurking behind every corner.

With an apologetic smile, you excused yourself to get some fresh air and cool down. All the champagne and shameless flirts made your cheeks burn uncomfortably, not to mention the undulating irritation emanating from your dress-covered right shoulder. Whoever your  **soulmate**  was, was surely pissed off at something.

You caught yourself gritting your teeth for no reason. Fortunately the guests you had excused yourself from were too enchanted by you that they weren’t bothered the least.

“ _The princess is on the move,_ ” Nyx heard another glaive reporting the obvious through an earpiece every bodyguard held in their ears. He rolled his eyes to the roof, but decided to stay silent and avoid further quarrels with his comrades in arms. His eyes carefully followed your light steps as you made your way to the balcony.

“ _Someone should look after her, she’s heading over to the balcony._ ”

“I’m on it,” Nyx blurted, his voice huskier than he had intended and it made him grimace inwardly. He slowly started following you with slightly hesitant steps. One question burning like a bonfire in his mind:  _should I actually attempt to make a conversation with her?_

Nyx sighed. He never had issues with talking to women — innocently or not. Somehow just the thought of having those bright eyes meeting his made him feel lightheaded.

You could feel the exasperation turn slowly into nervous tingling. The thought of your mysterious soulmate experiencing an interesting life made you chuckle quietly as you picked a glass of Altissian wine from a tray a waiter was conveniently carrying around.

All the eyes were on you as you walked towards the balcony. Your eyes strictly locked on your target and the presence of the glaive bodyguards skulking in the shadows allowed you to walk in peace, otherwise you would have been suffocated from all the greedy guests waiting for the right opportunity to strike and deny your access to have a break.

Insomnia looked so peaceful from one of the highest floors of the Citadel; all the traffic had calmed down and the city lights littered the cityscape in an alluring way. The sight made you feel relaxed, not to mention the cool breath of air brushing your skin.

Nyx felt a tie knotting in his chest as he shadowed after you to the balcony. His eyes were sternly on your back and he unintedly balled his hands into tight fists, his nails digging into his palms just from sheer nervousness.

His mind was filled with curses as he tried to muster the courage.

_She’s just the most beautiful woman on Eos, nothing wrong with me talking to her. Just act cool._

As you had just begun relaxing, a wave of uneasiness washed over you. It made you hold onto the railing with whitened knuckles.

“Isn’t it a bit chilly in here, Your Highness?” Nyx spoke completely unintentionally. He grimaced as soon as he realized that the words had just slipped out of his mouth. He cursed inwardly again. There could have been a better way to break the ice.

It felt like a hook had caught your insides and the short pull made your heart skip a beat as you turned around out of politeness to meet the man behind you. Hearing someone talking to you was completely unexpected as you had hoped to be alone even for five minutes.

“I’m fine,” you answered with a casual smile. Your voice sounded weak for the situation. Maybe it was the fluttering you felt in your chest or the small flames heating up your body again — causing you to forget everything

You had never seen anyone capture your attention with a few words and a bright blue gaze that froze instantly as it gained contact with yours.

The feeling was different by all means; it was new and unfamiliar in every way, yet it felt like it had always been there.  _Waiting for you._

Nyx swallowed as his eyes took in every detail of you. His brain had gone blank from all thoughts he had previously had and the glaive was suddenly so lost in your fawn-like expression, that he forgot how to breathe.

_You were more beautiful than he had thought._

Neither of you did notice how your soulmate marks purred out of content. Mark being close to another, desperately aching to feel a touch from the owner of its counterpart.

You swiftly turned on your heels to face the night view of the crown city once again. The cold breeze did not cool down the burning sensation in your cheeks and the coiling in the pit of your stomach only made it worse.

“So, are you one of the new bodyguards?” you asked shyly, feeling stupid quite soon after the words had been spoken. Of course he was one of them, even you knew that much about the plans your father had for you.

“Yes — I am, Your Highness,” he answered. He clenched his jaw and tried to avert his eyes to observe the surroundings.

Even your sweet voice was drawing him to the point of losing the last remaining drop of control he had. Nyx couldn’t stop thinking how your skin would feel under his fingers. What would your lips taste like? Would your tongue have a taste of the champagne you had been sipping all night? How light was the fabric your dress was made of? Would it be easy to just lift the hem and…

Nyx decided to walk over to you and circle his battle-scarred hands over the railing to feel the cool breeze of the night. His mind had been wandering to places not so cold and he really needed to calm himself down.

_I’m on duty, goddammit._

You couldn’t help the chuckle that escaped your throat after you had observed his actions by side-eyeing him subtly.

“I never thought it would be so hot in here,” Nyx noticed the amused smile you were wearing.

“I would say it’s the wine, but I assume you haven’t had a single sip,” you said. Your grip on the railing loosened slightly, but the race going in your chest wasn’t calming down anytime soon.

“Someone has to protect you,” he answered and the corners of his lips pulled a wry smirk to his lips.

You tried hard not to let him notice how you side-eyed him more than you should have. Why hadn’t you met him before? If he was a glaive and you already knew a bunch of them, then why? His features had your attention completely trapped and the smirk made your knees weak and wobbly underneath you.

You tried so hard not to lose your balance. Not even your hands on the cool, stone railing could make you feel stable.

Fortunately Nyx didn’t see your moment of weakness as he had hard time fighting back the urge to steal a glance at you. He had found a building to fixate his eyes on and to keep himself disciplined and bit his lower lip a bit too harshly.

“Has the evening been pleasing so far mister…” you asked, the wish for a peaceful and silent break from all the chatting long gone with the wind. The warmth of your soulmate mark was finally strong enough to coat you with anticipation added with a touch of hesitation.

“Nyx Ulric, Your Highness,” Nyx answered, making the mistake of ripping his eyes off the building in the distance.

His intense gaze felt like it burned right through you, setting every nerve in your body in scorching flames. You felt like your heart had been caught in your throat.

“And yes, it has been a pleasant evening. Peaceful.”

You attempted to smile, but your cheeks felt too numb to obey you. “I am glad to hear it,” you exhaled and turned to stare at the sky.

_My heart can’t take this much longer. What in the Infernian is going on?_

The silence took over and the only weak sound coming from the guests and music in the room behind you.

“You like watching the stars?” Nyx suddenly asked, trying to shake off the remnants of the hesitation. He had to man up, or he wouldn’t be able to face himself afterwards.

“They’re pretty beautiful— but the Citadel isn’t the best place to look at the night sky,” you answered. Steering your thoughts to pleasant memories certainly helped, it was better not to think about the company you had. Though you had never traveled outside the city, there were still plenty of parks to admire the starry sky from.

“You should have seen the night sky in Galahd,” Nyx chuckled. “Though the stars could never match the ones in your eyes,” he wanted to add, but the realization struck him, making him feel breathless again.

_Flirting with the princess?_   _What are you even thinking?_

He owed a lot to the King, but flirting with his only daughter wasn’t certainly an appropriate way to repay him.

“Maybe we can go there one day,” you said with a slight smile adorning your face.

“Maybe one day,” Nyx agreed. Despite his heart skipping occasional beats every time his eyes happened to meet yours, he felt comfortable with you. It was strangely easy to have a conversation with you, the princess of Lucis.

Unfortunately your brief moment together on the balcony came to an end, when a member of the council announced that it was time for the princess to have a short speech.

“Well, it was nice to meet you,  _Nyx Ulric._ ”

Nyx watched as you returned to the party. Never had he felt so lightheaded before, but just hearing his name coming from your lips made his head spin from temptation to get to know you better.

And you felt the desire burning your shoulder. It made you pause briefly and look back to get a final glimpse of the man who had just turned your world upside down.

* * *

Days passed, but you couldn’t have a moment alone with Nyx. He was still stationed to guard you, but he wasn’t warding off suspicious people alone. King’s orders were that there had to be two or more glaives in your company constantly, so he had to keep his distance.

That didn’t stop you stealing glances as he stood by the door in form. Hands behind his back and an empty, professional expression worn on his face.

It neither did stop him from letting his eyes linger on you, when you weren’t looking. It was the only moment when the look on his face softened.

The only comfort was the  **soulmate** mark that started emanating with cozy warmth every time you two were in the same room. Yet you had no idea that the one who carried the counterpart of your mark, was Nyx Ulric — hero of the Kingsglaive. He was oblivious to it as much as you were and restraining the feelings the bond gave made his job challenging.

Every night as you sank into the luxurious mattress in your bedroom, you were filled with longing. You kept distracting the empty feeling in the pit of your stomach by reminiscing in the moment at the balcony.

Every morning when you were forced out of the bed to eat breakfast with your father and brother, you were filled with eagerness and hope. Hope of finally getting a chance to talk with  _him._

And every day, when you had to attend to your duties as the princess, your thoughts kept slipping to places they shouldn’t have.

Everyone was worried how you paid no attention, when you were asked to give your opinions on politics as you were expected to eventually take a place in the council.

You also received a deep concern from Ignis, when he attempted to correct your a flaw in your manners and only receiving a blank stare into the void as an answer.

You were consumed by a wish of getting a chance to talk with Nyx and Nyx alone, but you weren’t the only one hoping to have a moment —even a minute— with you.

Nyx had also paid attention to your behaviour, but he was powerless to do anything about it. He couldn’t just walk up to you and ask “what’s wrong, Your Highness?” without getting suspicious looks.

Regis too, was curious about the sudden change in your demeanor, but he didn’t want to fuss about it — until it really started bothering him.

“Y/N,” Regis asked softly. It was the third time he tried to bring you back to the face of Eos, because you were still soaring high in your thoughts — with a somewhat dreamy smile smeared across your face.

Noctis was still half-asleep at the table and he was staring blankly at the piece of toast he had on his plate.

Your happiness was mixed in with the worry Nyx had as he stood in guard at the door to the dining room. He tried hard not to eye you more than it was appropriate, so he busied his mind with the promise to go out drinking with Libertus on the next day.

“Y/N,” Regis repeated, his tone dark and warning.

“She’s not listening, dad,” Noctis groaned at his father’s attempts on gaining your attention. It was all in vain.

“I can see that,” the King answered with dissatisfaction and drained his cup empty of the beverage it contained. He slammed the cup on the table with force, causing the table tremble just enough to make the plates, cups, forks and knives tinkle. More importantly, it made you jolt in surprise.

Nyx jolted as well, but only because he felt the shock sparking from his shoulder. He let his gaze scout the room, but no one looked as surprised as the princess. If his soulmate was in the same room…

_Ah, maybe it was just an odd coincidence?_

Regis stared at you with his brows furrowed and you could see him gritting his teeth and furious flames roaring in his eyes.

“Y-yes, father?” you coughed and the embarrassment made your neck burn mildly.

“Did you get the information of today’s schedule?” his voice was almost a whisper — loud enough for you to hear, but still so frail and frustrated that it made the hair on the back of your neck stand on their ends.

“Oh— I was planning to take a walk in the park,” you said casually. Gods knew when was the last time you had strolled outside, basking in the sunshine.

Regis gazed you with narrowed eyes and the wrinkle between his brows grew deeper, “have you forgotten about your own party already?”

You stared at him in disbelief. No one had talked to you about a party. Unless…

Your eyes widened, “oh you mean the charity event?” If the King knew more about your duties and plans than you did, then you were pretty much knee deep in… feces.

It was one of those things you were allowed and further suggested to do as it gave a better public image of the Royal Family. With the help of Prompto, Noctis’s best friend, and some other young promising artists you had managed to raise quite a sum for the benefit of homeless pets. That evening you were supposed to make an appearance, to get the high class guests donate for a good cause by helping the artists sell their art.

Of course it was just another excuse for the over-eager council to stick their noses into matters at your hand and match you up with their noble-born sons. But you had decided to take that bullet, if it meant a happy forever home to a cat or a dog.

“Better not miss it, Prompto’s been on about it for days,” Noctis grunted. Your eyes met and he let out a halfhearted chuckle as he saw how flustered you were about forgetting something so dear to you.

* * *

For your misfortune, the trip to the park had to be cancelled. You had planned to get a moment alone with the bodyguard you so much craved to get to know, but because the charity event for the good of the homeless pets was close to your heart and it was something you had worked hard for, had to come first this time.

All the fuzzing over the dress for the evening and getting the right makeup to make your face glow like the moon on a starlit sky kept your mind distracted from Nyx who was standing in form in the living room of your personal quarters.

And Nyx, who was tasked with guarding you for the rest of the day tried to keep his wandering eyes in check, as he caught glimpses of your bare skin as you switched from a dress to another. He could see the whole show through a small gap in your half-open bedroom door.

He even let a silly suggestion wander into his subconscious: should he go and close the door, so no other glaives could steal a peek of you wearing only underwear?

The image had burnt deeply into his mind and he had to exhale a couple of times just to let the slightly aroused feeling calm down. Nyx closed his eyes and slowly counted backwards. He even let his mind wander to dark and tormenting places he normally denied himself of during work — but it worked only for a moment.

Nothing seemed to work when he kept wondering what it would feel like if he was there with you. To watch you try out a new dress someone had brought you. To let his hands wander on your waist, feeling you out like you were made of the finest silk. Carry you to bed like you were made out of fragile glass.

_Shit. Not again._

* * *

You spent the all day getting ready and you weren’t able to see Nyx as much as you would have wanted. He was always positioned in an unfavorable spot for you to rest your eyes on him, but you knew standing away from  your sight was just a safety measure.

The ties between the Lucis and the Empire made the King worry for your life more than normally, hence the constant guarding. Noctis had his own share of the King’s protection, but he actually had a shield that towered the most of the ordinary people and he didn’t really need anyone else with him.

You could have definitely handled a fight for sure as Gladiolus made sure you and Noctis kept up with sword practice, but it seemed like Regis didn’t trust your skills enough to leave you in company of one bodyguard.

Nyx felt his heart skipping a beat when he saw you in a gorgeous dress that perfectly accentuated your eyes. The way you carried your body and how the hem undulated with every step was just too unspeakably breathtaking.

Your eyes met. Finally. And you could feel how the warmth in your shoulder spread all over your body and how it made your heart skip happily a few beats in its excitement. Nyx tried to keep the look on his face as neutral as possible, but couldn’t help a small smile from forming on his lips.

It was time leave the Citadel for the event and three kingsglaive soldiers that had settled into your room started moving towards the door, keeping their distance to you.

“I’ll go first— Your Highness,” Nyx hurried to block your path out of the room, “it might be unsafe outside.” His gaze gained contact with yours again and it sent a spark to rock your spine. You tried hard not to blink and you didn’t even notice when a purse fell from your hands.

The heat that had receded into the void to wait for the right opportunity, flooded down to your core like a cup of finest ebony you could get your hands on. You flashed a weak smile at Nyx, completely forgetting about the fallen purse your handmaiden was offering to you with weakly hidden frustration.

His heart fluttered at your smile and he had to resist the urge of answering into it. A corner of his mouth was already twitching — forcing him to turn around and open the door.

All you could do was to stare at the man as he walked right in front of you. And by the Six did he smell heavenly. You could have just stood there all day, enjoying his scent. Nyx could feel the desire through his soulmate mark and so he had to bite his lip again to keep his thoughts clear.

A car was already waiting for you and as much as you would have loved to drive your own car all alone, or in the company of just that one glaive who defiled your innocent mind, you weren’t allowed to do so.

A stab in your pride and a tear forcefully bitten back, you got into the fine bulletproof car. Nyx made sure he got into the same car as you did, but he had to take the passenger seat as a female glaive took the one next to you before he managed to get a better hold of the situation.

As soon as the car started to heading towards the event, the awkward silence took over the atmosphere. It felt oppressive to both you and Nyx, and the only solace you were able to get a hold of was the overly cheery tune playing in the car’s radio.

You jammed to the beat involuntarily as you tried to drown your thoughts, your eyes blankly staring at the blurry view opening from the car’s darkened window. The female glaive shifted in her seat and Nyx wished he had a rearview mirror for himself.

He would have given anything for that female glaive and the driver just to get out of the car. He already drove away to somewhere more quiet in his thoughts and it brought a wry smile to his lips. Nyx decided to play with his imagination to take the frustration away.

You felt the slightly joyous spark in your chest and you had to bite your lower lip to stifle a giggle. You glanced shyly at Nyx and the ecstatic flare reached further again — he was more handsome than you remembered.

No one paid any attention where you kept your eyes during the car drive as it looked like you were just gaping out of the windshield.

The car ride felt longer than it actually was. The glaives acted like proper gentlemen and gentlewomen as they helped you get out of the car and to walk in to the event.

The gathering was held in an old factory building, renovated to hold art exhibitions, weddings, funerals… it was fit for every occasion. The old brick walls had the feeling of old in them, but the walls also reflected the modernity of the newly added touch.

Noctis, Prompto, Gladiolus and Ignis were all already in there having an intense looking discussion and briefly you forgot the small bunch of glaives following you as you dashed towards them as fast as your dress and shoes gave in.

The room wasn’t only filled with photos and paintings; some of the Insomnia’s animal shelters had attended the party and so there were dogs and cats attending as guests as well.

“We should go through the evacuation plan in case something happens, Your Highness,” Nyx followed you quietly, making you jump in surprise. Noctis crossed his arms and quirked a brow from the interruption. Nyx noticed the prince’s reaction and bowed apologetically. “Pardon, me your Highness.”

Noctis scoffed and shifted his sapphire blue gaze from Nyx to you. “Sure. Sis, go chat with them — we’ll be here.”

The other glaives were all waiting slightly further behind, everyone with their arms crossed over their chests. You noticed how people were giving them a nervous side-eye and it awoke a new idea in you as you walked over to talk with the glaives with Nyx by your side.

Never would have you thought to be so happy just to join in a conversation about safety protocols.

“So, what’s the plan?” you asked in a cheerful tone, that was ignored by your bodyguards. They all wore similar, bored look on their faces, but it didn’t make you fall down from the high you had just reached.

Standing next to Nyx made you feel rather content about being in the company of tired glaives.

One of the glaives took a step forward and started explaining the idea, how they were going to protect you — should something happen. You tried your best to listen every word diligently but you grew self-aware from Nyx’s presence.

You felt like the time had slowed down, when you imagined the smirk he had flashed you back at the balcony. You were wondering if he would flash it you again sometime later that night and if you could actually pull a proper smile at him. The thought of you looking silly instead of trying to actually be a princess-like person still haunted you.

Well, it was his fault that he made your knees weak.

“Your Highness, what do you think about the plan?” the glaive asked you and you snapped from the thoughts that had pulled you into some sort of half-dream-like state.

“Ah, yes it is excellent!” you breathed, wondering what he had actually been talking about. The good thing was that no one really expected you to know things, so if a need would rise you could always just listen to their orders.

“Good,” he answered with a short nod, “we shall observe then.”

You stood in place for a moment, and spoke: “I have one question though.” With that you gained full attention from every single glaive surrounding you. Even Nyx had to stop himself from restraining his wandering gaze. “My guests are showing signs of uneasiness, so I should suggest that I only walk with one of you.”

Nyx swallowed. It was the chance he had so badly craved for days. If only he could keep you to himself all night.

“That sounds reasonable, we can’t all be in one tight bunch,” answered a female glaive. You wanted to bury her with gifts as you hadn’t expected anyone to agree with you.

“Did you have anyone specific in mind? I could vol—”

“‘The one I want to take with me is…” you intercepted the glaive who had been going through the plan with you, with a whisk of your hand. It would have looked highly suspicious if you had picked Nyx instantly, so you let yourself hide your plans by furrowing your brows and cupping your chin. You let your eyes move slowly from one glaive to another, pausing at Nyx, moving on…

“I’ll take him,” you stated in surprisingly strict tone with your thumb pointing the glaive next to you.

“At your service, Your Highness,” Nyx answered and bowed down graciously, hiding the relieved smirk playing on his lips as he stared at your feet.

  
  


 


	2. Chapter 2

High hopes of spending the evening with none other than Nyx Ulric were shot down like a bird on a hunting season. A guest after a guest flooded you with questions and suggestions, attempting to be subtle — yet failing terribly.

“ _Good evening, Your Highness, how are you doing today? Are you seeing anyone currently? I just happen to know the perfect bachelor. A real charmer, you’d be surprised.”_

A surprise would have been if they all didn’t know a guy that just happened to be single. But as the princess of the Lucis kingdom, you had to force yourself to act like you were completely invested in their rosy speeches about a man you hadn’t even met.

Nyx wondered how you managed to treat them all with such kind, welcoming smile that made his heart skip a beat if you happened to flash it into his direction. He could feel the frustration through his  **soulmate**  mark, but he had no idea that you were the one carrying the counterpart to his.

* * *

Those fleeting happy moments, moments when your eyes met Nyx’s made you forget about everything else. The agony the guests gave you washed away with just a glimpse of the familiar ocean blue. Knowing that he stood by your side, made you feel safe, blessed and maybe even slightly giddy.

“I am going to need a break soon. I want to sit down for a while,” you sighed out your thoughts as you waved off another elderly couple and a new one was dangerously glinting their eyes towards you. Like vultures waiting for an opportunity to sink their claws in an already weak target.

“I can tell them to back off,” Nyx informed, feeling relieved of your urgency to take a break. Physically he would have gladly stood there all day — but the guests were slowly drawing him mentally towards the brink of a breakdown.

You lifted your gaze and saw him staring right at you. The content purring of your  **soulmate**  mark had been suffocated and replaced with exasperation caused by the constant pour of questions and now you could feel the bond strongly again — spreading its warmth all over your body.

The usual sensation of delight had gained a new shade of steadily growing desire as the evening shifted closer to night.

It made you side-eye Nyx even more than usual and Nyx tried to ignore the feeling as best as he could, but his mind kept slipping through his grasp.

You just looked damn beautiful and the exhaustion you wore made him want to steal you away. Of course he had to mentally punch himself in the gut for such selfish thoughts.

“I would appreciate that,” you said, the glow heating up your cheeks and causing you to fan your face with a hand to cool down. How did one man drive you all hot and bothered without even trying? No one else had managed to do that yet.

_If only there was a balcony to retreat to._

You had no idea how to behave around the man, so you kept a polite, princessly approach as you spoke to him. He did the same by acting as professional and emotionless as he could, even when his heart screamed against it.

Nyx nodded and stepped in front of you to block the way just before another elderly couple managed to greet you.

It slightly pained you to deny their chance to have a chat with you, but you desperately needed to rest.

You heard him apologizing to the guests while you headed towards a bench to sit on. The glaives who you had ordered to scatter around the room kept their eyes strictly on you and you couldn’t deny the surge of uneasiness washing over you when you were being under so many eyes.

He felt it too; his soulmate mark emitted an anxious swell as it purged the joyful choir the marks had joined in to. Nyx wanted to comfort his unknown soulmate, but he was powerless to do so.

If only had he known that his soulmate was just a few feet away.

You let your body slump after all that standing around. To carry your body like a princess drained all your energy.

Talking like you were the most knowledgeable creature and speaking like your tongue was made out of silver had your jaws jammed and brain fried. Your whole body was sore from all that, even when you were used to it on daily basis.

Fortunately Ignis wasn’t at the event to see you sitting shoulders slumped and eyes fixed into oblivion, or else you would have heard about it for the next three weeks — or longer, if he felt like you needed a reminder.

Nyx flashed a smirk as he returned to you, “everything okay, Your Highness?”

You lifted your gaze and tried your best to answer him with a smile — but you felt like your cheeks were falling out from their places and you lips felt so numb. You had never felt so “charming” before.

“Just exhausted.”

He chuckled and positioned himself next to you. He was standing while you were sitting — as sitting next to each other would have been seen as an act of courting.

Such a thing wouldn’t have been allowed between a princess and a measly soldier.

Nyx felt a pinch of sadness in his chest as he thought about it — why did he even think about it? He could never have someone like you and you would have deserved someone better. Much better. Not him. And yet he couldn’t stop thinking about you.

You sensed the saddening sting poking your heart and for a moment you felt sorry for your soulmate. The heartache you both suffered caused an awkward silence to fall over you. Nyx kept his gaze strictly on the surroundings, his hands behind his back and expression blank — as it was supposed to be. But in his eyes anyone could have seen the shroud of melancholy of not being able to do anything about the situation he and his soulmate were in.

Your hands rested in your lap, squeezed gently into fists. But your lips were gradually tugging themselves into a smile, though it was a sad one. Sad from not being able to help the suffering you felt through the mark.

“Uhm, Nyx,” you mumbled eventually and the glaive shifted his gaze to you, but denied himself of getting a better view. He saw the sorrowful downward curl of your lips.

_What’s wrong princess?_

He wanted to speak out the words aloud, but he couldn’t.

“Your Highness?” he spoke instead, dismissing the moment of anguish he had experienced. He'd have to deal with it later.

Once you turned, you lifted your eyes to meet his side-eye.

Nyx felt like everything had paused. He knew he belonged there, next to you. He swallowed, wondering if he could just… no.

“I—” you started and in an instant, you were knocked down from the bench. A sharp pain twinged your elbow and your lower back as you fell down on the cold concrete floor with a huge, furry dog quickly gaining its position on top of you. All of its four legs sprawled around you and hot breath fanning against your skin as it prepared to get a taste of you.

At first you squealed in terrified panic—

“Princess!” Nyx gasped in horror and jumped to remove the dog from top of you.

—and then you giggled as the fluffy creature had a great urgency to clean your face with it’s soft and wet tongue. You shrieked from the tickling sensation and you could distantly hear how Nyx and a couple of others shouted for you.

Nyx had not been so worried in years. Worried of losing someone he barely knew, yet his heart ached every time he heard your high-pitched squeaks. Just the thought of you getting hurt made him work harder.

The canine was stronger than anyone would have guessed. The creature had almost feral strength. Strength it used to smear its saliva all over your face.

Finally, with the cooperation of a bunch of glaives and a couple of animal shelter workers, the dog was pushed away from you. It whined as if it had been interrupted rudely and it kept looking at you longingly.

“I am so sorry, Your Highness I—” one of the shelter workers whimpered, tears were streaming out of her reddened eyes.

“No need to apologize,” you paused her with a whisk of your hand. She stared at you, sniveling and sobbing but the expression turning ultimately confused. “He is an amazing dog and I surely hope that he will find a forever home for himself.”

“Thank you, Your Highness,” another worker stepped in. She was as horrified as her co-worker, but at least she wasn’t crying. You shot them both a warm, reassuring smile and turned quickly to give orders to the group of glaives who had instantly dashed to help you with the furball.

“Are you alright?”

“Yes, I am fine — but I think I should go and clean up my face…”

Your back and elbow still ached uncomfortably, throbbing pain coursing through your body — but it wasn't _that_ bad. It would heal. Eventually.

Nyx eyed you up and down, surprised by how you managed to be so… calm. He knew you weren’t like most of the nobles; he knew you were different. But still he had expected to see some kind of lash out at the workers, or even hear the disappointment with a couple of well-chosen words to scold them.

No. You just kept amazing him every day with the most simple actions. It made him want to see more of you, a side hidden from the public. A side he had managed to catch glimpses of.

“I will escort you,” Nyx stated, his tone could have cut even through steel; he was determined. But his heart told the other: it was still racing with anxiousness from the scene the dog had caused.

You turned your head just slightly to see the glaive standing next to you. His back straightened, hands on sides and mouth pulled into a thin line.

“Thank you.” Your response may have sounded weak, but Nyx saw a sign of relief in your expression. He responded with a tiny nod and waited for you to head for the ladies’ room, while the remaining glaives scattered and resumed their positions.

You walked in silence, Nyx only a few steps behind you. You wanted to say something but the uneasy flickering in your chest rendered you speechless.

He was a glaive and you were a princess — sharing a common interest sounded quite absurd.

“Thank you,” you finally said.

Nyx quirked a brow in surprise, “why are you thanking me?” He ran his hand through his brown hair and groaned inwardly. He hadn't been the only one running to the rescue.

“You turned away those guests, helped with the dog… I…” you looked down at your hands for a second or two. “You have been kind to me.”

Nyx blinked, unsure of how to react. “Those were the orders.” He hated himself for that; they hadn't only been the orders, he had wanted to do it and would do it again. Any time.

But would it be wrong if he told you?

“I see…” you mumbled with a slightly trembling voice. You had hoped for a different kind of answer.

You felt an uncomfortable burn in your soulmate mark. It didn't hurt, but it bothered you. Nyx placed his hand on his left shoulder to feel the tingling heat through his Kingsglaive garbs.

_What is going on?_

Embarrassment, shame, tension and disappointment scorched your marks almost in a scolding manner.

“Your Highness.” His voice made you halt.

You turned to look at the man over your shoulder. There was a slight frown shadowing his handsome looks, but you could see the gratitude in his eyes.

“I appreciate it. I may have orders, but that doesn't mean I don't want to protect you.”

He saw how your eyes lit up with excitement. It made his heart melt.

You felt it too; your heart fluttered once again when it was just the two of you. You hadn't even realized that you had paused your journey to the ladies’ room.

Nyx wished for the time to stop and he was about to lift his hand to caress your cheek. But he stopped, his hand slightly in the air. “We should continue.”

“Oh, sorry!” you mumbled nervously feeling your cheeks grow warmer.

Nyx’s brows shoot up from curiosity. A princess shouldn't apologize. But one thing he was sure of, as he watched you pick up from where you left.

The dog had a damn good taste for girls.

* * *

The charity event ate a good portion of your already scarce free-time. The ride in the black bulletproof car had been awkwardly quiet — like it had been when you arrived at the party.

But at the same time you couldn't stop beaming inwardly, nor did you want to do so. The small chat you had managed to uphold with Nyx cast a fluttering in your gut again as you kept reminiscing in the memory again and again.

On that very same night after getting lectured by a council member or two, you retreated to your quarters. Nyx’s shift had ended and he had returned to his own matters, but your heart was already longing for his presence.

What a selfish person you had become, you wondered as you thought about calling him back to work.

The feeling made you chuckle in the darkness of your bedroom.

The confusion of the feelings you felt around him corroded you; no one had ever made you feel like that. You didn’t even know what he was like and yet you couldn’t wash away the loneliness when he was off-duty. Part of you thought about getting his address from captain Drautos — but would it be right to just knock on his door like a lovefool girl?

_...a lovefool?_

You wanted to laugh and cry simultaneously and with your hands squeezed into tight fists you bit your lip. A fleeting sting in your lip and the taste of blood, blurred your senses.

“I’m an idiot.” There was no mirth in your little, cold laugh and you hoped that no glaive outside your bedroom would listen to your brief monologue.

Nyx felt it too, half-thanks to his mark, half-thanks to his own thoughts that were somewhere along the same lines with yours. He was lying down on his bed, staring at the ceiling and the picture of Ghalad taped on it.

His mind wandered to you, to his family, to his feelings… He sighed, hoping to understand more. Why the princess of Lucis kingdom was on his mind constantly? He barely knew anything about you — as a person.

He wanted to protect you, to be with you, feel you. “Why am I doing this to myself?” he groaned to himself, surprised to hear his thoughts aloud.

After all, Nyx was all alone in his apartment. He would continue to be alone too. He had no family nor a steady relationship. Libertus was like a brother to him, but that was it.

And what if he couldn’t protect you, like he couldn’t protect his… Nyx swallowed as he tried to seize the train of thought getting off-tracks, he didn’t need any extra emotions with his current ones. But there he was, getting off-track to unlock the chest of memories — full of forbidden thoughts.

You had nearly dozed off as the exhaustion tried to claim you, but the growing pain took away all the tiredness.

_Why does it hurt so much?_

Your own tears suffocated any reasonable thought and your mind was shrouded inside a thick, black cloud of misery. You felt angry, sad and lonely at the same time.

Your palm, curled into a tight, fist was flickering from the flames inside. Whatever your  **soulmate** was going through, had your guts burn in agony. The hurt, the longing, the sadness and the disappointment had brought a ball of fire into your hand.

It didn't burn you, it brought warmth on your skin as the small flames roared desperately on your palm. It fought against you, weakly.

_I'm here for you._

Shifting your thoughts into something more cheerful calmed down your soulmate. The hurt was still in there, poking around, looking for a weak spot.

_Everything's going to be alright._

You let out a sigh of relief and closed your eyes. Wet trails on your cheeks from the tears shed for your soulmate being the only telltale of your brief misery. The dreams were finally able to claim you to a realm unknown.

* * *

“Thanks man, I needed this,” Nyx yawned as he caught a bottle of beer Libertus Ostium had slid to him across the table. He welcomed the day off with open-arms as he pushed away the need to be by his princess’ side.

“You have been burying yourself in work lately. Found yourself a girl from the Citadel?” Libertus snorted and opened a beer bottle in his hands, “lucky you if it's the one at the office.”

Nyx chuckled and observed the bottle. It was so nice to finally relax and enjoy. His newest assignment had kept him so busy that he had barely even seen Libertus in a while. “I thought you called dibs on her first.”

Libertus shrugged, “well— I tried, but I don't think she's interested.”

The glaive brothers laughed and clinked their bottles. A well deserved weekend had begun in the company of Nyx's best friend.

They talked about whatever came to mind and after downing the first bottles they ordered new ones. Nyx felt tipsy after three bottles of beer and the cheerful feeling hid the ones his soulmate mark was sending.

* * *

“You okay?” Gladiolus Amicitia asked, his hand on your shoulder keeping you still.

“I’m fine…” you giggled unexpectedly. You slammed your hand over your mouth and felt the embarrassment burn your cheeks.

“Are you drunk already? What did you drink at dinner?” Noctis grunted disapprovingly.

“N-no — my soulmate seems to be having a good time,” what you had attempted to say with a nonchalant laugh, escaped with a slurred chuckle — like the ones you often let out for your guests entertainment in the high society gatherings.

It was sweet to listen to and you managed to wrap your guests even tighter around your finger. But around your brother and his shield it had no effect.

Noctis and Gladio traded worried looks behind your back.

“Soulmate?” Gladio asked, mystified by the thought that someone actually had a soulmate.

You peeled your sleeve just enough to reveal the mark resembling a crescent moon with a dagger. Noctis groaned in irritation, but Gladio remained silent.

“I can’t believe you actually believe in that stuff — isn’t it a bedtime story for kids?” Noctis said, rolling his eyes in disbelief.

“Or you just have a lame soulmate and you pretend that they don’t exist!” your protest made Gladio howl in laughter.

Everyone had a soulmate mark, to end up with your destined one was just a question of motivation and luck.

“I have one too,” Gladio flashed a wide smile at the embarrassed prince. Noctis attempted to hide his mildly reddened cheeks by looking in the other direction.

* * *

“Do you believe in soulmates?” Nyx asked after he had downed his fifth beer. His speech had started to slur from the consumed alcohol but that didn’t stop him. It didn’t stop Libertus either, —who had had the same amount of beer as Nyx—, from understanding his best friend.

Crowe and Pelna had also tagged along after a training session. Nyx had bought bottles for the freshly joined weekend-celebrators and the four of them sat around a wooden table, enjoying their drinks.

“Don't you remember what your old man told us?” Libertus asked with his brows shot up in bemusement.

Crowe seemed interested in their talk, while Pelna was checking out a girl passing by them. He had lifted a bottle half-way up and thanks to the pretty lady had obviously made him pause. Crowe nudged him subtly with an elbow.

Nyx shrugged lightly. He couldn't possibly remember everything his dad had told him and the much less happier memories tended to take over. He took a sip from a newly opened bottle and swept his mouth with the back of his hand.

Libertus sighed heavily in dismay.

“Well, we all carry our marks — so I guess I do believe in them,” Libertus sighed and his gaze dropped briefly. He kept rolling the bottle in his hand. “Did you find your soulmate, or why are you asking?”

Nyx’s lips widened into a smirk, “just curious.” His soulmate had helped him calm down when he was having a moment and it rose a warm, fuzzy feeling in his chest.

Libertus repeated Nyx's words quietly, like he was mumbling to himself in disbelief.

“Hey, don’t give up, maybe yours is behind a corner,” Crowe tried to cheer Libertus up with a light laugh.

“But there is a girl…” Nyx continued. He had not mentioned about his feelings to anyone. The booze certainly had opened the gateway to his rose petal-coated secrets. “A girl that I can never have.”

Libertus frowned, “sucks to be you, then.”

“Is there even a girl our mighty hero can't have?” Pelna rolled his eyes, but laughed after.

“I'm sure there are plenty.” Crowe snorted.

It brought a smile to Nyx’s lips. Even the beer couldn’t take you away from his thoughts on a day off.

* * *

“Yeah? Probably because you take so much time doing push-ups instead of feeling things,” Noctis paused the taller man with his snide comment, to which Gladio answered with a smug wink and grin.

“Are you the right person to talk about feelings?” Gladio asked smugly.

The two of them had started a debate whether soulmates were true or not. Maybe Noctis was just too thick to notice? Or maybe Gladio's dating life was so active that he didn't notice the feelings of his soulmate.

Noctis surely seemed to be convinced about it all being a fairy tale.

“Hey, at least I have more game than you do,” the shield howled and you had hard time keeping your composure, instead of rolling on the floor and suffocating from the laughter. Not to mention the sluggish feeling your drunk soulmate emitted.

“If you think the mark is just so that you can feel your mate being horny — you are both wrong,” you trembled from the fit of laughter trying to bust the doors of self-control open.

“Then what's it for?” Noctis asked.

“Finding the love of your life — obviously.” You rolled your eyes to the roof and sighed.  _It was just so simple._

Noctis snorted as if you had just told him a good joke, but Gladio seemed more interested in your statement.

“Love of your life, huh?” You could hear the shield mumbling to himself.

The thought of your soulmate made you feel warm and you pressed your palm over your chest, right over your heart. The tipsy feeling still bubbled inside you and you let out a quiet giggle. One that missed both Gladio's and Noctis’ ears.

* * *

Days passed. Some of the days passing infuriatingly slow and some of them so fast, that it felt like you had just gotten up from bed when you were already preparing to go to sleep. You had literally no idea what happened on those days.

Nyx had returned to work from his brief vacation and nothing would have made you happier than seeing him standing in guard in your chambers.

It was a great relief during those fleeting days, because no matter how many times your eyes met his, you felt like the whole world stopped from revolving.

For once in your life, you were bored. It was still an hour or so for the next object in your schedule, so you had time to sit down and… wait.

You took it as a chance to get a bit bolder around your guards. Normally you pretended that they didn't exist, as it made your life easier to not think about having eyes on you constantly. But now the situation was almost begging for a conversation.

“Do you have any hobbies?” you asked politely from everyone, even when your question was meant for Nyx. You barely knew anything about him — just his background and what was on need-to-know basis.

You wanted to know what was his favourite food or if he liked watching movies. You were curious to learn more about his history and most importantly: was he seeing anyone? You fiddled with the hem of your shirt, looking as innocent as ever.

Sadly, no one answered right away and for a moment you had thrown a chunk of hope out of the window. Maybe you had been too hopeful.

Nyx pondered whether he should answer. He had been ordered to not to communicate with you unless it was necessary. Casual chatting was forbidden — which seemed almost ludicrous.

“I tend to work out whenever I have free time, Your Highness,” Nyx answered finally, shattering the calm the glaives had been ordered to upkeep. He had decided to screw the rules for once, there was no harm in answering a simple question.

“Ulric, we aren’t supposed to have this kind of conversation with the princess,” one of the glaives scolded from a corner, eyes glinting in the dim room dangerously.

Nyx cocked a brow at the grumpy glaive, “so I should ignore a question the princess kindly asks?”

He could hear the displeased grunt coming from the glaive, while the other let out a quiet chuckle.

“No, please. I don’t mind talking to you,” you said, trying to sound carefree. You just wanted to know more about Nyx and there was nothing wrong with that. Whoever had come up with instructions on how to act around you deserved a slap and a reassignment.

“But the orders—”

“I give you an order,” you paused the protesting glaive with a warning glare and when you turned your head back to Nyx, you could see him enjoying the situation. He looked half-surprised and half-proud.

“I go out for walks with my friend and her dog whenever I can,” the other not-so-grumpy-glaive told.

“That sounds fun!” you beamed.

“Drinking with friends ain’t that bad either,” Nyx chuckled.

You were filled with wonder. Nyx had seen so much life compared to you. “Do you guys ever go to a drive-in and order food?” you suddenly asked.

“After a heavy night out only, Your Highness,” Nyx answered with an upward curl of his lip.

“Oh?” you gasped curiously, wondering if Nyx knew any good places. You had only escaped the wrath of Ignis a few times before with Noctis and Prompto. Everyone surely made a big deal of your diet.

Nyx flashed a knowing grin at the glaive who had been complaining and then he shifted his gaze back to you. “If you ever have a craving to get some greasy takeout food, just let me know and I’ll help you get there.”

You couldn’t help the burning sensation in your cheeks nor a relieved smile from spreading across your face. “That would be—”

“Your Highness,” hit your ears as soon as the door to your chambers opened. You flinched mildly and saw Ignis bowing down curtly at the doorway before continuing: “the King has requested for you.”

“Already?” you breathed.

Nyx couldn’t suppress the sudden uneasy feeling in his chest. It was like his heart had clenched just a bit.

Your eyes had frozen at Ignis and you swallowed. Questions and thoughts poked the back of your mind. It was quite unusual for the King to ask your presence out of the blue.

“Yes, he wishes to see you immediately.”

“Oh, okay,” you responded somewhat meekly and stood up from the comfortable couch you had been relaxing on previously. The glaive trio in your room stiffened as they prepared themselves to follow after you and Ignis.

* * *

You followed Ignis all the way to another level of the Citadel. It was a small meeting room you usually met your father and brother. A family meeting room as Gladio used to say.

This time you entered the room, but there was no sign of Noctis in there. Only the King and his shield stood on the opposite side with a concerned frown worn on their faces.

“Good afternoon,” you greeted with an attempt to sound eager — but couldn’t keep it steady and you ended up sounding worried and fragile.

You saw how worry passed through Regis’ gaze before he steeled himself again. You knew he was going to talk to you as the King of Lucis, not as your loving father. Clarus kept a blank stare, but you could see him gritting his teeth, because his jaw clenched from time to time.

The glaive company and Ignis was left behind the door as it closed after you.

“Y/N,” Regis spoke, pondering his words and choosing the right options carefully.

“Yes?”

“I cannot stop the council any longer, so we have arranged a date,” he said slowly.

“A date?”

The King sighed, dark circles underneath his pale eyes, looking tired as ever. “You are going on a date with Cassian Lacertus.”

Lacertus was an old family line, mostly consisting of officers and soldiers — even a few special agents under that noble family name. You would have probably ended up dating him a few years ago if he hadn’t had a girlfriend back then.

And how fitting would it be to date a princess? You sighed, knowing that it was something your father was forced to accept. Going on a date with a noble guy probably wouldn't mean anything. If it was up to you, he'd end up being discarded like a wet towel.

At least that’s how you planned it; you had no means to be together with a guy who did it for social reasons and not because he had a crush on you.

“So it’s happening now,” you exhaled — disappointment obvious in your tone.

Clarus bit his lip and lowered his gaze. He had always been kind to you and he seemed to be pained by the thought of you dating someone not worthy of you. The king did not respond. He just observed you in a calm manner.

“I-I thought…”

“Like I said, the council is very determined in this matter,” Regis said calmly. “You have been avoiding your duties long enough.”

_Duties? What kind of duty is it to date someone I don’t even like? Or even marry? I..._

Before you could utter another word, Regis stood up. “Things aren’t looking good on your behalf,” he said softly, like he was trying to apologize and he walked over to you to give a pat on your right shoulder. “They are even considering to announce an engagement between you two.”

The shoulder the King had touched, tensed. Your soulmate was watching over you — you knew it so.

You saw the sad kindness in his eyes. “Thank you, father,” you mumbled, feeling too numb to flash him a smile.

_Why am I even thanking him?_

He nodded curtly and exited the room, Clarus following him.

Somehow your knees felt weak. Your heart throbbed from sadness and you felt empty. Turning around to leave the room consumed a lot of your energy.

But you couldn't take another step before the realisation struck in.

“Are you alright?” you heard Ignis asking. He had entered the room after the King and his shield left.

You tried to respond, but only a hum escaped your dry throat.

Nyx and the two other glaives followed Ignis to the room. Nyx saw how void your gaze was and how you were squeezing your hands tightly — like you were holding onto something.

“Your Highness,” Nyx said. His heart made an anxious skip.

_What is going on? Why is she so pale?_

You couldn’t bring yourself to answer. You felt weak. So weak. First you saw the world like you normally did, but now it had turned bleary — like you were looking at it through a mosaic glass.

Nyx saw how limp your body suddenly turned and how your trembling, numb legs gave up. You were  falling for what felt like an eternity. He instantly dashed to embrace you — to stop you from collapsing and getting hurt.

His heart ached and pounded like mad. “Y/N!”

“Nyx…” you whispered — eyes fluttering. You felt how his arms wrapped around you and it cut the shroud of unconsciousness you were almost fell into. Your felt lightheaded, warm and complete.

_Is he… holding me?_

You saw him so clearly even through your half-hooded eyes. You felt the warmth of his body as he held you a few inches above the floor. You wanted to touch him — to be sure if he was real.  

“Y/N!” you heard Ignis shouting off somewhere. It must have been irrelevant, you thought. You were in Nyx’s arms and you wanted to be nowhere else.

Nyx couldn’t stop staring at you. He was afraid for a moment before he caught you — but now he felt complete. His soulmate mark had never been so content before as it was now.

_She’s so beautiful… so innocent and pure._

He should have helped you up, but his mind was jammed from holding you like a flower — afraid to break you if he did something.

_She really feels like the finest silk or the smoothest petal. Why am I feeling like this?_

“Ulric!” one of the glaives raged at him. Pulling Nyx out of the dreamy world.

“Oh— right!” Nyx gasped and helped you up, “are you alright, Your Highness?” He felt abashed from his sudden loss of self-control. He was still on duty and there was no way that holding the princess like that for that long would look good.

You shook your head. “I think I need some rest…” your heart roared in your chest and your soulmate mark was on overdrive. It really made you see stars.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you are wondering who is Cassian Lacertus; he is a random guy I invented for this fic but there will be a bit more of him in the future.


	3. Chapter 3

The news of an arranged date and whispers of a promising engagement spread across the citadel like a wildfire. In less than a day the whole building knew about it, and it was only a matter of time for the press to get a whiff of it.

Two days after the scene in the meeting room, Nyx was wearing his armor and he was nowhere near you; he was at the Kingsglaive’s headquarters — practicing. Or at least that was his original intention, but he couldn’t keep his mind from wandering into moments he should have ignored, but they called out for him from the shadows.

Nyx couldn’t believe that the King would actually force you to date someone, not to mention marriage! It wasn’t like him. Or if it was — something had changed.

“Nyx?” Crowe hooted, making no success in waking up her comrade from his attention consuming brainstorm. No, the memories of the scene in the meeting room held his comprehension of present activities captive in heavy chains.

He swallowed and his heart skipped a beat after he recalled how you had felt in his arms. If only he could have held you longer.

“Nyx, seriously, it’s our turn.” Crowe grew irritated. She even waved her armored hand in front of Nyx’s eyes, but her attempts proved to be futile. Crowe groaned and rolled her eyes, preparing for a more serious way to wake up the daydreaming soldier.

His lips curled into a tiny smile. He was still able to remember how you were just like he had imagined: fragile, silky — perfect. Nyx had never felt like that by just holding someone in his battle-scarred arms and the sole memory still made the hair in the back of his neck stand up from sheer excitement.

Not to mention the eager sparks clashing in his soulmate mark, sending alluring waves throughout his body.

Crowe balled her hand into a fist and narrowed her eyes. “Sorry, but this is your fault,” she sneered coldly and quickly jabbed his shoulder. Nyx yelped and Crowe’s irked expression shifted into a mischievous and triumphant one.

“Oi, what’d you do that for?!” Nyx groaned and rolled his shoulder whilst Crowe snickered at his agony.

“We are supposed to practice,” she giggled and pulled her hood down.

Nyx shook his head, but smile returned to adorn his face once more. “I’ll make sure you regret that punch.”

“Did I hurt your feelings?” Crowe laughed theatrically. She threw her dagger into a huge pillar in the middle of the room and vanished into thin air with just a flash of blue embers, marking the spot she had stood on a few seconds ago.

“Just my ego!” Nyx shouted after her with a wide grin on his cheeks and quickly followed after her to begin a fierce battle that took place all around the pillar.

* * *

After the well spent moment on dashing, warping and dodging fireballs and bolts of lightning across the sparring room Nyx and Crowe returned to ground level. Both sweaty and exhausted — but content and thrilled, blood coursing wildly in their veins.

Libertus was sitting on a chair, looking highly amused to see his friends return from their training session.

Nyx had been extremely busy attending to his duties at the Citadel, so he hadn’t really had time for actual combat practice and what use would he be of if someone dared to threaten the princess’ life?

“Haven’t seen you here in a while, hero,” Libertus teased with a joyful laugh when he saw Nyx taking down his hood.

“I think you said the same the very last time I saw you,” Nyx grinned. The practice surely had made him feel great and refreshed. “And that was last week.”

That meeting had lasted only a few minutes; Libertus had been sent to deliver some documents to the Citadel and had actually ran into Nyx.

“You should train more often. You’re getting rusty,” Crowe scoffed coldly, panting between words.

“Hey− I went easy on you,” Nyx chuckled.

Crowe cocked a brow and folded her arms over her chest.

“Sure thing,” Libertus laughed in disbelief.

“Guarding the Princess must be too easy.” They heard someone a lazy comment. Nyx turned just slightly to see Tredd and Sonitus throwing him judging looks. “You probably can’t even handle a gigantoad if you’re as rusty as it looks.”

“I don’t recall seeing gigantoads inside the walls,” Nyx snorted emotionlessly and shook his head.

Tredd narrowed his eyes. “Well you’ll never know what kind of  _hairy creatures_ tackle the princess. Maybe they even snatch her for themselves.”

Nyx gritted his teeth and clenched his fist. Tredd was trying to get on his nerves like usual — but Nyx wasn’t going to fall into his trap. “I’m sure they’re going to call you first if there is a hairy creature to get rid of. You probably know all there is to know about them.”

“Just shut up Tredd,” Crowe groaned and threw him a warning look. If there was one thing Tredd was afraid of — it was the angry female glaive. She was probably even worse than Ifrit’s hellfire.

“Whatever.” Tredd shrugged and turned around, looking majestically annoyed at Crowe and Nyx. He motioned Sonitus to follow to leave the trio behind. They watched Tredd and Sonitus disappear behind a corner and Nyx turned to face Libertus.

“He seemed mad,” Nyx shook his head and let out the gasp of air he had been holding in his lungs.

“I think he’s just jealous. I mean, everyone wants to be the princess’ bodyguard.” Libertus shrugged casually and shifted his gaze from Nyx to Crowe.

“Drautos didn’t let him become part of the guard,” Crowe sighed, “which is probably for the best.”

“I didn’t ask for this,” Nyx reminded bitterly. He wasn’t given much of a choice back then. The King and Drautos had literally ordered him to join the guard. Nyx felt sorry for his friends who still had to get up and fight, while he was just standing in guard, doing nothing but daydreaming shamelessly.

“Oh, we know. Just make sure the princess stays safe,” Libertus smiled, a trace of melancholy in his words.

Nyx nodded at him firmly. There was no need to ask for him to do his job now after he had actually met you and just the thought of losing you made his heart swell with anguish.

Of course he would make sure you were safe. It wasn’t an obligation anymore — he wanted to keep you safe. No matter at what cost.

“There was a reason they made you her bodyguard,” Crowe said quietly with a hint of sadness in her voice, yet she still managed to sound somewhat content at the captain’s decision. Nyx knew what she meant and for a moment they stood in silence.

“So anyone wanna grab some lunch before Nyx ditches us again?” Libertus broke the silence.

“Sure, why not,” Nyx answered and felt how his mouth curled up into a smirk.

“Only if Nyx is buying,” Crowe jested.

* * *

You woke up late in the afternoon, body sore from sleeping uncomfortably and waking up in the middle of the night only to toss around the bed. The past few days had been like living inside a thunderstorm conjured by the god Ramuh himself.

Everything felt so messy and it exhausted your body and burned your soul down into cinders. Only what remained was the comforting warmth of your soulmate mark.

And finally a ray of hope, glistening from above in your upside down life, came down to light the charred remnants of your existence the moment one of the maids opened the doors to your bedroom. The chance of stealing a glance at Nyx right after you had opened your eyes, cleared out the fog that had consumed your dreams and desires and had thrown you into dark realm of anxiety and misery.

There he was — standing in guard like he always did. Handsome and serious. Gaze steeled and body prepared to deflect all those who dared to oppose you.

You knew you were looking at him rather dreamily and you kept hugging your knees under the bed covers. Your heart skipped a beat and the tender coiling in the depths of your belly crashed like a wave against a shore.

His gaze found yours and you could immediately feel a trail of sparks coursing through your veins, eventually nesting in your soulmate mark.

You slammed your hand instantly to cover the mark. Its warmth caused you to come up with a hundred questions and before you managed to get another look at Nyx — the door had been closed. The eager tide of longing swirling inside you again, making your quiver lightly.

You accepted the defeat and started counting and pondering how long it would take to see him again. Being away from him made you feel so sulky and lonely and so you hugged your knees even tighter as if it would bring some comfort into your ‘morning’.

“Good afternoon, Your Highness. Today is an excellent day for a party.” The maid who had entered your room started explaining about an important cocktail party scheduled for the evening. It would be the last chance to find a better suitor for you to date. Another party for the same cause — things were never going to change.

All you were able to do was to swallow the bubble of frustration growing in your stomach and watch how the maid started bringing out clothes from a closet at the back of your bedroom.

Nyx waited along with the other glaives for you to get ready. He gritted his teeth anxiously and tried to hear you speaking, but the only noise coming behind the bedroom door was from the talkative maid.

He heard how you went through a countless amount of dresses and he was already wondering if you would even make it out of your bedroom in time.

You admired your reflection a dress after another through the mirror in your room and you caught yourself wondering if Nyx liked it. Your cheeks heated up uncomfortably as you gave it more thought and it was hard to restrain your imagination from taking a fully charged gallop into the planes of wonder.

The fabric was so light and smooth — almost like a shroud. And it was a perfect match for your eyes and hair. It brought a tiny smile to your lips, which seemed to satisfy the maid.

“Maybe you should wear a shawl to cover that.” The maid was pointing at your soulmate mark. It would just bring in more curious questions, ones you didn’t feel like answering.

“Yes. Maybe.”

“ _What an embarrassing detail for a Princess to have.”_

Dressed up to the nines, like a princess should, and makeup and hair done perfectly, you emerged from your bedroom more eagerly than ever. It was another cocktail party and surely you had had your share of those, but you wanted to see Nyx again.

You saw him once again and he fixed his light blue eyes on you and for a moment, your world had found the balance. Everything mattered, yet everything was irrelevant.

Nyx tried to stop himself from gaping at your figure like an idiot, but he simply couldn’t. His breath had been drawn away in that single moment when he had laid his eyes on you. And the bright smile on your painted lips wavered Nyx’s pillar of focus.

Soulmate marks sparked almost out of irritation as one sensed the other’s presence. It yearned for its counterpart with mad desire, but was unable to reach for it.

“Her Royal Highness is going to have a dinner with His Majesty.” The maid informed Nyx rather coldly.

“Of course,” Nyx scratched his ear and reluctantly ripped his gaze off you to begin the escort to the dining room.

You bit back the fit of giggles and swept away the upward curl of your lips.

“After you, Your Highness.”

Nyx and the other bodyguards followed you, steps echoing from the dark walls of the Citadel’s corridors and hallways. People you passed on your walk bowed out of respect and you flashed a smile, titled as one of the most beautiful sights on Eos, in return.

Regis was already waiting at the table. He shot a curious glance towards you, maybe slight disappointment mixed in it. He didn’t approve waking up late, yet you and Noctis were masters at the sport.

“Good evening,” Regis greeted calmly and you could sense a hidden groan of frustration in his slowly spoken words.

“Morning,” you let out a yawn as you took your seat at the long table. Noctis shone with his absence and your only guess was that he was out with Prompto. Or sleeping. “So what’s up with the party tonight?”

“It is simply to give you more time, my dear” he answered. “I don’t personally enjoy the idea of you being wed to… Lacertus.” Regis sounded exhausted. It was something that piqued Nyx’s curiosity and your concern.

“What do you mean?”

Your father had not looked so tired in ages. He lifted his pale gaze from the dinner set out in front of him and he tried to muster a comforting smile. “I know he is not the one your heart yearns for, but also his reputation is quite disturbing.”

It was like a pile of pebbles had poured down into the pit of your stomach.

Nyx sensed the anxiousness in you, but it was covered with his own. He shifted his gaze from you to the King− and gritted his teeth. He wanted to speak up his mind, but Regis noticed his intentions and gave him a warning look. Nyx had to back down and swallow his concern.

“Why are you allowing this to happen then?” You cocked a brow at your father.

“Because there is no actual proof and that his father is quite an excellent man, so I dearly hope that those rumors are just… rumors.”

Unfair was that you were forced to date a man you had no feelings for and unfair was that the man you were supposed to marry, had dark rumors swirling around him. You knew your father wanted the best for you — and you knew the council wanted to lift the spirits of the Lucis Kingdom by announcing an engagement.

Yet you were powerless and afraid, anxious of the upcoming events.

* * *

Just another party where you met all the available bachelors. Ones you had met a dozen times before, some you had met a couple of times before and a bunch you had met once before. But no sign of the one you were promised to.

Exhausting speeches.

Laughing guests.

But none else made your heart skip a beat than Nyx.

And of course he was one you weren’t allowed to speak to.

It felt wrong in every possible aspect, yet your eyes kept wandering to find the glaive across the room. You wanted to make sure he was there and would come to your rescue if you needed it, and honestly, you felt like you needed it.

Nyx sensed the despair, the need to get out of the room. He saw the excruciating pain in your expression and felt it in his soulmate mark. He could have dashed in to interrupt one of the foreign ambassadors from pestering you — but there was no particular reason to do so.

It was your task to mingle and unless the situation got out of hand, no one was allowed to interfere. No matter how much it hurt Nyx to see your agony. He had to look somewhere else to calm down and he pinched the bridge of his nose to gather the scattered shards of his focus.

He had a job to do and no emotions should take over him.

“How about him?” Noctis asked after the ambassador had finally decided to go grab a drink. You chuckled at Noctis’ suggestion — he was pointing towards an older man, near to his sixties.

“Are you insane?” you giggled. At least your brother was allowed to swing in and ease the frustration the guests caused. His job was to keep an eye on a future wife for himself, but somehow he didn’t seem too interested in the noble ladies amongst the guests.

Gladio on the other hand seemed to enjoy the amount of single ladies attending to the party; he was shamelessly flirting with two girls. Simultaneously.

“Then why is he here?” Noctis scoffed, but the corners of his mouth curled into a tiny smile.

“Probably trying to advertise his son or daughter,” you snickered, “or maybe he is here as an early Santa.”

“The latter seems more correct,” Noctis jested and you bursted into light giggle. “Should have known.”

Nyx saw you smiling again. A sight he would never get tired to see.

Noctis picked out the phone out of his pocket and observed the screen for a moment, then his eyes widened. “Oh shit— gotta dash. I promised to—”

“Oooh, a girlfriend?”

“Shut up.”

You snickered at him as he hurried to leave the party. You considered the option to leave too, but you saw Regis squinting his eyes towards you. He would order his guards to stop you, should you try to leave early. Instead you grabbed a small slice of chocolate cake from a passing waiter with a tray on his hands.

You stole a glance at Nyx again and for your surprise — he was directly looking at you. You felt the warm purr in your shoulder spreading all over your body in an instant and that transformed into embarrassed heat up in your neck.

A smile, more natural than those you had been giving to your guests, appeared to your lips.

Nyx could feel his heart missing a beat. And another. He tried to print the memory of that curve of your lips into his head so hard…

…that he couldn’t stop staring.

You slowly took a bite of the cake, eyes still locked on your bodyguard. You wanted to look away but you couldn’t.

Maybe it was the air, or the cake or Nyx− but you seriously felt like melting in the delightful evening and decided that it was for the best to take a small break at the balcony again before fainting in front of your guests.

* * *

“Ditching the party already — Your Highness?” You heard Nyx’s voice coming behind you quite shortly after you took your spot at the balcony. His familiar voice drew a smile all over your face. All the glances you had thrown at his direction over the evening had made you feel so dizzy, but now that he was alone with you, your senses felt clear as the starry sky above you.

Hearing his voice made a pleasant shiver run through your spine and your cheeks warmed up in the cool breeze, it was like your first time together. You felt flustered and nervous, yet curious and content.

“Everyone is trying so hard to please me,” you sighed and cocked your head to see the glaive. He had hands crossed behind his back and his eyes were nailed on the view opening from the balcony. You bit your lip and averted your gaze briefly, but when you looked at him again, he was staring right into your eyes.

Nyx said nothing and moved to lean against the railing with his elbows. You tried not to stare at him too much. The silence made you hear your heart pounding violently in your ears.

And he felt the same. “You look amazing tonight, by the way,” he said silently — knowing that you had heard the same probably a dozen times earlier. He needed to say those words aloud, no matter the consequences.

After a silent pause in your short conversation, you started giggling at his words like a foolish little girl and the burn in your face spread to your ears and arms. “Thank you, Nyx.” You would have felt annoyed, had it been anyone else saying those words.

Nyx let out a nervous half-chuckle that was more of a cough. He straightened his posture to face you. “Alright, well…” if it hadn’t been so dark outside you would have noticed the tiny trace of blush visiting his cheeks. “You’ll get cold out here.”

“I’m alright. I just want to be here a bit longer.”

_But what if I want to stay here, with you?_

You wanted to say that out loud, but you couldn’t bring yourself to it. You were unconsciously gnawing your lower lip while your hand balled into a fist, only to loosen it again.

“Do you always escape parties like this?” he asked, playfulness treading in his undertone.

“Only when I know that there is a chance for better company,” you mumbled. Tender coiling in your belly grew warmer and stronger.

Nyx let out a warm chuckle. He bit his lip and looked at you.

“What do you think about my engagement?” It was the question you wanted answers for. Somehow the only person you could ask about it, was Nyx. A man you barely knew. A man who you were supposed to ignore completely.

Somehow he had expected a question like that. Nyx sighed heavily. “I don’t think you should… be with him if you don’t like him.” He kept his tone as even as he could, but the firebrand of jealousy roared in flames once again.

“I see,” you murmured and fixed your gaze on a tall building not far from the Citadel. “Thank you, Nyx Ulric.”

His guts made a wild backflip and he scratched the back of his neck. “Just doing my job here.”

“As an advisor on romantical matters?” You couldn’t help the fit of giggles escaping along with the question.

“Would you want that?” he asked suddenly and you saw how his eyes steeled from honesty.

_Is he… serious?_

“Want…” you whispered and moved closer to him. You hesitated; you wanted to lift your hand and place it on his chest. But it was wrong and if someone had caught you behaving like that around a glaive — who knows what would have been the consequences?

Instead, you tilted your head to a side just slightly and continued with a soft purr: “what?”

Nyx froze and his gaze dropped to your lips — he swallowed softly. You were close enough for him to catch the scent of your perfume. The scent clouded and intoxicated his mind. His hand on the cool railing moved closer to you.

He wanted to say it, to say that he wanted to be yours.

You waited, feeling how your skin tingled out of anticipation, knowing how your heart pounded in the still evening. Your body shook along with each thud that drummed in your ears and each exhale heavier than the previous one.

Nyx made the tiniest of movements to get even more close to you. One thousand words in his mind, yet his brain more blank than a canvas before getting painted on. Your painted lips screamed to be tasted and he wanted to taste them so badly, but…

“Your Highness—”

His previously soft tone turned into hard iron and he paused to reprimand himself for incorrect behavior.

“You should probably go inside, they need you in a moment.”

You pulled back, soulmate mark protesting your actions furiously. You squeezed your hand and turned around, cold chains wrapping around to still your racing heart.

Nyx regretted his decision to pull back immediately and tried to convince himself that it was the right thing to do.

“I guess so…” you accepted your defeat. There was no way back into that moment you two had just had. The butterflies in your guts fell down like the winter had arrived months too early.

_Maybe it was just my hopeful imagination._

Nyx cursed inwardly at himself again. He had finally managed get a moment with you. Alone. And he was terribly screwing the moment up. You never saw how he clenched his jaws at the frustration he had caused himself.

You sighed and gave him a short nod to notify him that you were about to return to the party. He didn’t spare a reaction of any sort, not until you had almost gone through the doorway.

“Your Highness.“ He exhaled suddenly.

You turned around, already a silly, shy smile splattered across your face. The hope had sparked life into you.

Nyx halted briefly, his mind pushing off the hesitation he had had before you turned around. His mind went blank as he saw how you beamed under the starlight. He was filled with the need to touch you.

“There’s something on your…” Nyx mumbled and without thinking, he leaned in closer to wipe a corner of your lips with his thumb. The soft swipe of his finger made you flinch and tense up from astonishment.

He didn’t pay any attention to your reaction and he had already licked his thumb, now furrowing his brows as he pondered what he had just tasted.

“Mm… chocolate.”

Your mouth fell agape, your eyes were almost the size of dinner plates and the corner of your mouth burned like a bonfire in the aftermath of his touch.

That was something you had not expected anyone do to you.

Nyx must have realized what he had done, when he nearly jumped back after his gaze was lifted from his thumb to the shocked expression you were wearing. “Apologies, Your Highness —I…””

_Fucking hell, what have I done?_

Nyx felt a shock wave of panic traveling through him as he waited for a slap, a dismiss, a banish… anything. He knew that what he had done was completely wrong, yet he couldn’t bring himself to regret it completely.

“Uhm…” you lifted your hand to touch the spot where you had felt his thumb. “Thank you.” A feeble answer left your lips as you turned around to hide the flustered expression creeping to adorn your cheeks.

“Your Highness,” Nyx answered somewhat weakly and bowed to you behind you. His soulmate mark going on overdrive, craving for more.

And you felt it too.

* * *

On the very next day you were summoned by the council. The date with Cassian Lacertus was arranged for the next evening and the council wanted to have a brief discussion on the matters of the announcement of a royal engagement.

If ignoring Nyx was manageable before, it was impossible now. Somehow you kept drifting back to the moment when his fingers touched the corner of your lips and the memory still sparked a heating wave in your lower abdomen — much to your discomfort.

No one had so casually touched you before on the lips and you wanted to hate the memory and scold him for what he had done. But instead you caught yourself longing for his touch.

You tried to search for him− his soothing blue gaze — but he was walking behind you.

What he had done was wrong, but how were you going to confront him if you were constantly travelling with a bunch of other glaives? You felt awkward enough already.

“I can escort the princess,” Nyx suddenly stated as if he had read your mind, though his voice was void from all emotions. Everyone halted their movements in surprise and Nyx cut that train of thought in your vividly buzzing mind. Instead he had just loaded another train with plenty of stock.

Nyx knew it would be the only opportunity to properly apologize. He had spent a sleepless night rolling in the sheets, pondering the mistake he would normally forget in a blink of an eye. He hadn’t been the only one and that night had been quite the battle of soulmate marks sending emotions to another.

And he still felt like a cartwheel stuck in a mud.

“We have orders,” one of the glaives protested. Nyx could feel the nervous fire in his chest, roaring up from the resentful reaction. He tried to keep a determined look on his face.

“Actually, I need to speak to him,” you said turning on your heels to face the group behind you. You let your gaze rest on each glaive’s face — until stopping at Nyx’s.

“Your Highness?” Nyx gasped in bemusement. He hadn’t expected you to comply to his request so quickly.

“I need to talk to him,” you narrowed your eyes and let your hands rest on your hips. “It won’t take long and I’d prefer to do this in private.”

Out of all the things chocolate was the reason he’d get scolded for. Nyx let out an inward laugh so hollow− that it would have scared the dead.

Nyx felt how the palm of his hand started to feel uncomfortably sweaty. He shook off the eerie sensation poking through his defences and nodded curtly to still the eagerness prodding in his chest.

“She will be behind closed doors, just make sure that no one suspicious gets through here,” Nyx spoke calmly.

He tried to resist the yearning pulses his mark sent through his body and reminded himself that this was all his fault —  there was no room for longing and hopeful, selfish daydreaming.

“My father’s guards are in the conference room — should something happen,” you said with the skilfully masked light swallow in your words. It would be the only chance to talk to Nyx, but the thread of ideas how to confront him was fraying.

“Y-your Highness!” one of the glaives protested. But you lifted your hand and shot the most silencing glare you could muster in that nerve-wracking situation.

The glaives traded slightly bewildered looks, brows furrowing and forming one thick line from the excessive thinking.

“Fine, we’re standing guard in here,” one of the glaives finally responded with a stern nod.

A sigh of relief escaped from both of you, luckily no one paid attention.

* * *

“We need to talk.”

Nyx followed you as you both hurried down the hallway only to pause a few feet away from the door to another conference room.

“Your Highness?”

He stared at you, unable to apologize. He felt sorry for what he had done and he wanted you to know that he would never do anything to disturb you.

Your chest heaved from the sudden sprint and you took a step closer to him. The words of scolding had left your mind minutes ago and all you could do was to return the look, almost like you were hoping to feel his touch on your lips again.

“What you did was wrong.”

Nyx took a step closer and tried to speak, apologize, but you had stolen his ability breathe and think. Speaking was even more hard and all that was in his mind was how your lips tasted, how your skin felt, how you moved.

You challenged the pair of sky blue eyes, fixated on you, trying to burn through you. There was barely no space between your bodies and if your heart could explode from anticipation — it would have turned into rubble instantly.

“I know,” Nyx’s weak whisper was barely audible.

When had all the space between you disappeared?

Nyx’s face was close to yours, frozen in the moment and filled with wonder of the scent of your perfume. It was the same, sweet and intoxicating.

Your lips parted to let out a wavering exhale and his gaze instantly dropped to catch the glistening of the lipbalm you had smeared on your lips just a moment before. Your gaze wandered to study every detail on his face, the small tattoo underneath his eye, light stubble that probably felt coarse against your soft skin, his lips…

And the lustful burning in your soulmate marks sent your bodies in craving, words could never do justice to that feeling.

“Your Highness,” he repeated with a breathily murmur and you could feel his warm breath dizzying your mind.

“Hmm?” you hummed quietly. It had never been so hard to speak to anyone before, not even when you first met him.

“I—,” he swallowed. Hesitation made his palms sweat and tingle. Words, what good would they do? His body answered by leaning in slowly and his nose almost brushed yours. You watched as his lips came closer, so close that you could see every strand of his facial hair.

Your heart throbbed so heavily in your chest that you wanted to end it already. And so you shut your eyes. And you waited.

_And waited._

_**And waited.** _

The sensation of feeling Nyx’s lips against yours never came. Your eyes fluttered weakly open, while your hand grasped your chest to ease the mad race tearing your ribcage apart. Nyx had pulled away and was standing far enough to look like he was waiting to be scolded.

The anticipating, tingling feeling fell and was instantly replaced with anxiousness and disappointment once you noticed that another member of the kingsglaive had entered the hallway. Crowe Altius was bowing respectfully down a few steps away from you.

Your blood was boiling, but not because you felt defeated and restless. It boiled, because Nyx had been so close to you, only to be interrupted by a fellow soldier.

Nyx gritted his teeth so hard it made his jaws hurt.

The sharp pain in his jaws transferred over to you, making you squint your eyes from the slight agony.

“Is everything alright, Your Highness?” Crowe asked.

“I—,” the words were stuck in your throat and you quickly glanced at Nyx, whose soothing blue eyes had turned into storm. Crowe looked at you first and then Nyx. She seemed troubled for a second, but then her lips curled into a slightly devious grin.

“Am I interrupting something?”

“Not at all, I was just about to go to a meeting,” you hurried to answer before Nyx. You nodded curtly at Nyx and Crowe to notify of your intentions of leaving the two of them behind.

Nyx looked away feeling embarrassed. The situation he had tried to solve had gained more knots than his original intention was. Crowe gave him an incredulous side-eye.

You left Crowe and Nyx behind as you rushed through the door to the conference room. Crowe and Nyx waited in silence for a minute, until she decided to break it with the most smug smirk on her face.

“So, the princess huh?” Crowe asked.

Nyx rolled his eyes and shook his head and muttered: “I don’t know what you’re on about.”


	4. Chapter 4

Crowe narrowed her eyes and a corner of her mouth curled upwardly, forming a devious smile on her lips. “You sure about that?” she inquired.

Only seconds had passed after you left the two glaives into the silent hallway.

Nyx let out a groan and threw his hands behind the back of his neck. He tried to still his pounding heart, eyes still glued on the door to the meeting room. It was impossible to believe what had taken place only moments ago.

All he had wanted to do, was to apologize —  _yet he had nearly kissed you._  He had fucked up even worse this time, if someone else than Crowe would have caught them in action…

No, he shouldn't have thought about it, but he knew he had almost dishonoured a member of the royal family. It was a grave mistake and there was no going back anymore.

He closed his eyes and exhaled like the frustrated man he was now. “Whatever you think you saw—”

“Oh, shut up already,” Crowe smirked. Nyx knew she wasn’t going to let him go that easily. “So a girl in the Citadel wasn’t just any random office lady? You went straight for the jackpot,” she jested, knowing that Nyx would get vexed.

“Did Libertus tell you that?” Nyx threw an annoyed glare at Crowe, hoping for her to drop the topic. He needed to get back to his duties, even when there wasn’t much to do while waiting for you to finish the meeting.

“Well, it’s not really a surprise that you’d be smitten by her. Isn’t she like the most beautiful girl in the Lucis?” Crowe pondered.

She was right, but Nyx wasn't going to admit his feelings out loud. Not to Crowe.  _Not to anyone._  “Why are you here anyway?” he asked, ignoring her speculations.

“Captain wanted to speak with me and apparently he is too busy to return to the headquarters,” Crowe sighed.

“Shouldn’t you hurry then?”

“Oh, I've got time…”

* * *

 

Every single pair of eyes fixated upon you as you entered the meeting room. The anticipating silence swirled around the room and you could have sworn that the council members were holding their breaths.

Eventually one of the council members broke the silence by clearing her throat. She started to speak, in vain; a question after another popped into your mind, causing the speeches fall onto deaf ears.

You couldn't stop wondering about the woman who had just interrupted you and Nyx. What had happened in the hallway was something you’d never even expect to happen. Yet reminiscing about it ignited a fire inside of you.

Another council member spoke. You squinted your eyes and shook your head, completely wrapped by your own mind.

Judging by the uniform, the woman was obviously a glaive and seemed to be oddly chatty with him. You couldn’t help but to wonder if she was Nyx’s girlfriend; after all, they were both glaives and they had probably fought together too. Side by side.

It would be a surprise to no one if two people developed a relationship before or after a battle. They lived in the moment.

_If it was true, he had some nerve to attempt to kiss you._

It was painful to admit that you still wanted to go back and see whether he would kiss you or not. The warm fire in your chest made you smile and earn slightly concerned looks.

You wanted to scream, because the conflict tore you apart, but doing that in front of the council wouldn’t do good.

“Your Highness?”

Your eyes were fixated into the void itself. Were you just another hopeless fool being played by the handsome glaive? The distressing burn in your shoulder, and a demanding tone coming from a council member yanked you back to reality.

For a moment you stared blankly at the worried woman in front of you.

“Sure. I'll keep that in mind.” Your answer was hurried; you had no idea what they had been talking about for the past minutes.

“That is not—”

“Now, please excuse me. I want to prepare for tomorrow.”

Shocked by your sudden rebellious act, none of the council members were able to stop you from leaving the meeting room.

You knew Nyx would wait there like the obedient bodyguard he was. You knew he would search for your gaze with his storm blue eyes. You knew it would send your heart into maddening rampage.

And you knew you would enjoy it, even when you shouldn't. Even when things were still a mystery to you.

* * *

 

“So what's your plan? Are you going to ask her out?” Crowe giggled.

“What? No! Of course not!” Nyx snarled, fury welling inside of him like an upcoming storm.

“But you would if you could?” She was completely shameless when it came down to tease Nyx, oh and she enjoyed seeing how Nyx clenched his jaws as he tried to contain the growing irritation.

He wasn't in the position to ask the princess out.  _He'd never be_ , and as much as the thought of it, his heart kept tearing apart l; he wished for it to be possible. Someday. In the next life.

Nyx had to rip his eyes off the door to answer her smug smirk with a boiling glare. But Crowe just snorted and whisked her hand.

“ _Wuss_ ,” she muttered and rolled her eyes.

“Did you say something?” Nyx asked.

“Well, the way you two were tangled up back in there—”

“Even if we were, that does not change a thing, okay?” Nyx assured and turned his eyes back at the door.

He wondered how your meeting was going and in the back of his mind he counted the time until he'd see you again.

Maybe he did regret the things he had done, the things just a bodyguard should never do, but for some reason he felt… warm. A tiny smile passed his lips and it didn’t go unnoticed by Crowe.

She was about to throw another snide comment, when the door unlocked and opened.

“The meeting is over.”

Nyx and Crowe tensed up instantly after they heard your voice. You entered the hallway and saw the mix of regret and helplessness in Nyx's expression, and the amusement glowing from the female glaive.

Crowe had a hard time getting rid of the smug smirk on her face. She bowed politely at you, while flashing a knowing smile at Nyx when you were done with your somewhat murderous glare.

“Are you ready to head back, Your Highness?” Nyx asked and flashed an unsure smile.

You narrowed your eyes and gave Crowe a quick, final side-eye.

“Yes. Let's go.”

* * *

 

The two of you walked in rather awkward silence for a while. Because there was no way of going back to the moment when you nearly kissed, you both took the time to come up with the right words.

The jealousy that had been slumbering briefly in your guts, lifted its head curiously.

“Who was she?” you decided to ask. It made your heart pound anxiously as you waited to hear an answer. Part of you anticipated for an answer you didn’t want to hear.

“Oh? You mean Crowe? She's another glaive.” Nyx sounded surprised to hear your curiosity.

“Is she your...”

“Comrade? Yeah, we've known each other for quite some time.”

“No, I meant if you two are dating?”

Nyx halted.  _Dating? Crowe? What?_

“Your Highness.” Nyx gathered his courage and made you stop with his bemused tone of voice. “You think I'd date someone if you and I were about to—”

He felt like the remaining sentence was caught up in his throat. You quirked a brow at him, heart skipping a beat.

_Kiss? Is that the word?_

Nyx avoided your gaze to hide his reddening cheeks. "She can be a bit pain in the ass sometimes but she's like a sister to me.”

“I see…” your cheeks grew uncomfortably hot, so you gave him a curt nod before heading back to the other bodyguards.

* * *

 

After the meeting, you returned to your quarters feeling relieved. Butterflies fluttered in your stomach every time your eyes met Nyx's.

_He almost kissed you._

You kept reminding yourself, and every time the familiar heat returned to linger on your cheeks. Shivers traveled down your spine and soulmate mark glowed longingly.

Nyx didn't want to glance you as often as he did, but he couldn't just bring himself to stop. What happened in the hallway had shifted another gear on inside his head and now he was heading straight way to his own doom.

He tried to remind himself of what he was doing− was utterly wrong.

“Do you have any plans for the evening, Your Highness?” one of the glaives asked politely.

Nyx mentally slapped himself to sharpen up his senses. Ever since you began talking to your bodyguards, everyone had become more talkative when you were holed up in your quarters.

There was no one around to scold, except you, and you enjoyed talking to the people protecting you. Giving them attention was the least you could do.

Besides it was the only way to learn more about Nyx.

“I, ah…” you stuttered, eyes wandering back to Nyx. “I am probably going to sleep early. I have an important day tomorrow after all.” You tried to sound happy, but the anxiousness that had been pushed back−  returned. It felt like a bucket of cold water was splashed onto your face, waking you up to reality.

“You must be excited!” another one said cheerily.

Nyx balled his hands into fists and looked away. You quirked a brow at him when you felt the animosity flaming up in your shoulder.

“Uh, I guess so…” You bit your lip and pulled the smile back on to your lips.

How could you feel excited about going on a date with a guy you didn’t like? It had been years since you last saw him and he had probably changed, a lot.

“We will be there for you, in case something happens,” the curious glaive reassured.

Nyx turned his gaze back to you. Seeing your smile removed the fog of rage from his eyes, causing his heart to melt and skip a beat.

He couldn't just let you go that easily. Even when he had no chance to have you.

“I don’t think—”

“Princess,” Nyx spoke, interrupting you. The other glaives threw him scolding looks, which Nyx ignored. “I will protect you from him.”

His tone of voice was so determined, it managed to catch you off-guard. But you believed him, there was no hesitation in the raging storm in his blue eyes.

You blinked, unable to respond coherently, so you ended up giving him a curt nod.

And the soulmate bond, roared like a bonfire. Not only because of need and desire, but because of both of you understood and trusted each other.

The other glaives noticed that something was up. One of them cleared a throat politely. “So where are you going to eat tomorrow?”

They tried to pull you back to reality with a simple question like that, but you found yourself completely lost in the look on Nyx’s face. You saw him in a completely different way now.

“Your Highness?”

He was just so...

“Oh, um…” you gasped and ripped reluctantly your gaze off him. Your cheeks grew warm and you let out a nervous giggle to hide your flustered expression. "There is this restaurant…”

“Maybe you should rest,” Nyx suggested, interrupting you once again. He furrowed his brows in concern and averted his gaze off you.

Truthfully, he had interrupted you to avoid hearing more about the date. It felt like a stab in his heart everytime and you felt it too.

“Yeah, that is a good idea,” you answered shakily.

* * *

 

_The princess? Wearing a flimsy… chemise?_

You skittered across your bedroom, barely wearing nothing to cover your royal rear while you were getting ready to sleep.

However, someone had been quite careless and forgot to close the door to your bedroom, giving someone standing in the right angle a good view of your preparations.

Nyx desperately tried to discard the image from his mind, but it just grew stronger with every glimpse he managed to get.

It mixed up with the memories of your scent, your face, slowly drawing closer to his.

The memory where he had nearly gotten a taste of your half-parted lips. Your voice. Everything he managed to remember from you burnt the image of you wearing almost nothing deeper into his mind.

And the feeling of your body — your soft skin. When he held you in his arms.

He felt his heart pounding rather vividly and he knew he'd have to excuse himself from the other glaives. His pants grew uncomfortably tighter by the second and soon it would be too late.

Nyx had to move his hands in front of him, to hide the tenting in his pants from the curious glances to his direction.

He bit his lip hard enough to feel a sharp sting,  _hard enough to draw blood from his lower lip._

But it wasn’t enough to stop him from thinking about you.

Soft, clean sheets and the weight of a long day dragged you almost instantly behind the veil of well deserved sleep. But the sudden pulsating need down in your core ripped the tail of your dreams from your grasp almost instantly.

Even when you felt heavy from exhaustion, a smirk formed to your lips. You knew exactly why you felt the bubbling desire; the mark on your right shoulder made perfectly clear of your soulmates needs.

After seeing Nyx being so determined and serious you couldn’t help but to feel slightly ecstatic. Not to mention the moment spent in the corridor before the meeting, before it was cruelly disrupted. Memories like that made you feel weak in a good way.

It was wrong to have feelings like that, but no one would find out if you stole a moment just for yourself?

Nyx’s eyes widened from the roaring pulse quaking through his body, firing up every corner and nerve. Of course he would capture the attention of his soulmate with his thoughts. More frustrating was the fact that the soulmate decided to  _help him out_.

“I’m going to take a small break,” Nyx firmly informed the other glaives, hoping that no one would find anything suspicious in his behavior.

“I knew there was something shady in that dinner…” one of the glaives shook his head and sighed. “Are you sure you okay?”

“Wha—” Nyx blinked twice, before he responded: “yeah, that must be it.”

He had to escape into a restroom as he knew through the bond that his soulmate was going to play along with Nyx’s debauched imagines. Even if he had to let others believe his need for a small break was because of badly cooked dinner.

Nyx would have laughed, if the straining hadn’t made him so uncomfortable. Not to mention his soulmate, who was probably sensing his plight and maybe even enjoyed tormenting him.

An image of Nyx appearing into your room, wearing barely nothing on, flared up in your delirious mind. Your hands moved to cup your breasts while the most lewd dreams of Nyx being the one touching your body took over your mind. Another warm pulse shoot down to your core.

Why had your mind taken such a turn all the sudden? Somehow you didn’t feel eager to find an answer to that.

A mirthful smile came to your lips when you noticed how you had captured the attention of your soulmate with your sinful actions and thoughts. It was his turn to make you feel something, you thought playfully as you let your hands roam and caress your body.

Nyx had probably never entered a restroom in such hurry before. At least not during work and full of need to get out of his uniform.

He wanted to curse at the sensation− as it had driven him away from you.

_But it all felt too good._

He could feel his skin tingling with excitement and blood raging inside of him. Warmth spread all over his body and the fire of his soulmate mark smoldered his shoulder like a furnace. But it wasn't an unpleasant experience, no. It lit up his nerves and caused his chest to heave from arduous breaths he drew.

Nyx unzipped his pants to ease the straining. He had to lean against the sink with two hands when a pleasant wave after another washed over him, leaving him vulnerable.

“Gods− if I ever meet you,  _soulmate…_ ” Nyx exhaled and backed away eventually to sit down on the toilet seat. He couldn’t feel his legs properly and he felt giddy.

_What in the name of Ifrit was the soulmate doing at a time like this?_

He almost surrendered to the animalistic lust and wanted to feel ashamed for having a break like that from work, but he really had no choice.

Your hands grazed your body, moving steadily South while Nyx filled your head and clouded your senses.

_Was it wrong to think about him like that?_

You bit your lip as you squirmed out of your soaked panties, blaming your soulmate for making you so… eager.

“Dear soulmate, if we ever meet− I’ll make you pay for disrupting me,” you cooed weakly and moved your hand down to your nether regions. You rolled your hips slowly, enticing a sweet gasp from your slightly parted lips.

Stars speckled your vision as you enjoyed the electrifying sparks of lust your soulmate mark emitted. There was no going back, and you started working to free yourself from the craving.

Nyx felt it; his eyes widened and he tried desperately to sit straight. Never had he experienced lust in a way like that before.

“You’re making me go crazy,” he panted, a wry smile appearing to his lips.

He knew he'd have to give up, and so he stood up just enough to remove his briefs. His throbbing member sprung free from confinement and he sat down, not believing the situation he was in.

If only he could have stopped himself from defiling the image of you, a princess, that popped straight away into his mind when he grabbed his length and carefully started stroking himself.

No one would ever find out, he promised to himself.

Nyx's mouth fell slightly agape and his heart pounded madly. But  _Gods_ , did it feel good. He felt both his own pleasure and the pleasure emitted through his soulmate mark.

And so did you.

It almost felt like someone else was teasing you. You sighed again and again, shivers undulating through your body, rocking your very core.

You whimpered when you pressed your fingers onto your bundle of nerves.

“Fuuuucckkkkk…”

Your fingers circled your overly sensitive nub and only moved away briefly to spread more of your own juices to aid you.

_If only he had been there..._

Nyx drew laboured breaths, hand stroking his hardened length, precum trailing down his veiny cock to ease his intentions.

_If she was here..._

And then, your soulmate marks started to burn differently, in unison. You both paused, shocked from the sudden feeling that surrounded your trembling bodies. It wrapped around you, gently.

Nyx's face gained an abashed expression when he saw your fingers curling around his manhood. He didn't understand how  _the princess_  herself had suddenly appeared into a locked bathroom.

All he could do, was to stare at you, dumbstruck. Only then it occurred to him that it wasn't real. _It just couldn't be real._  But he couldn't stop watching the sinfully sweet smile on your lips as you started stroking his cock.

“What the…” Nyx tried to speak, but he never managed to finish his sentence, when he already had thrown his head back. He couldn't speak,  _hell_ , he could barely breathe and even then it was uneven and heavy.  _Difficult._

Your eyes widened from shock when Nyx's hand moved to grab your fingers and move your hand away from between your legs. The carnal look on his face made your heart flip over and the liquid heat just poured down between your thighs.

He smiled mischievously as his fingers moved to tease you and eventually he lowered his head to press his lips onto your slit, tongue flickering and mouth sucking and pushing you slowly, but inevitably closer to the blissful void.

“Oh—  _Gods_  what is thi— ahhh…  _fuck_ ,” you mewled, trying to get a better view of the glaive, but the way he used his tongue—  _damn._

You never wanted it to end.

And he didn’t want you to stop.

“Nyx…” you managed to whimper, when his fingers curled up inside you again. He was merciless with his ministrations and all you could do, was to writhe helplessly as he pinned your legs against the mattress.

“Princess—  _fucking hell_ —” Nyx groaned his hand attempting to rake through your hair. But his hand just grasped through an illusion and the image of you in front of him vanished, turning into fading ripples.

Nyx’s eyes widened from surprise and before he realized, it was too late; he released the well built pressure and messed up his shirt.

He cursed and took off his shirt, his body still weak and shaky from his release, but he couldn’t loiter in the restroom any longer. He quickly washed the stains from his shirt and made sure there was no juicy evidence left for the others to witness.

You panted, squirmed and dug your nails into the mattress beneath you. You arched your waist towards his face, you wanted more. You needed more.  _You needed him._

Your vision turned blurry and white, your heart pounded in madness and your body sparked with pleasure. You felt both hot and cold and then— you body spasmed in your release and you clenched around his fingers. Only to collapse heavily on the mattress.

But damn, you felt good and relaxed.

“Nyx how did you—” you breathed, curious to hear how he had snuck into your bedroom without anyone noticing. But when you lifted your head, you saw how his figure started fading, small embers making his body disappear.

_He had never actually been there._

It was just a wild dream. A filthy imagine you had hoped to be real.

The rush of your blood, still in your ears, did not stop the pit from deepening inside your stomach. Nor did it cool the searing soulmate mark in your shoulder.


End file.
